Protector
by SweeneyintheNight
Summary: Giselle is sent to find her father, Barbossa, before her twentyfifth birthday. She starts to notice everyone's favorite oneeyed, funloving pirate Ragetti, but someone else starts to notice Giselle. RagettiOC
1. The Search Begins

"_Giselle!" Oh no. My mother was calling. Again. Ever since three years ago, the only times she wouldn't call me back into the room she was in was either whenever we actually where in the same room or when she was, thank the Lord Almighty, asleep._

"_Giselle! It's important!" _

_That's what she always said._

"_Coming Mother!"_

_She was lying in her bed, which was very odd. She would either be stomping around the house (an obvious sign of her "pondering") or sitting in the chair over by the fireplace. The only thing she ever did in her bed was sleep, and sometimes she would just spend the whole night in that chair._

"_Giselle," she repeated. I started to worry for her. She sounded really weak. She seemed really weak. "Come here, darling."_

_I stepped closer to her bed and sat down. _

"_You need to go search for your father," she told me._

"_I can't," I replied. "I won't leave you, Mum."_

"_You'll have to, Giselle."_

_She started to cough. It wouldn't end. She had never been sick before. Why would she be sick now, when I need her the most?_

"_I'm...sick," she said weakly. _

"_You know I can't catch what you have."_

"_I know. But you need to find your father."_

"_Mum..."_

"_He can help you."_

"_I need you."_

"_I know you are worried about what lies ahead. But your father can help you work this out, not me."_

_I got up and walked around the house. I didn't know what to do. My mother needed me, but my twenty-fifth birthday was coming up. If my mother's tales were correct, I needed my father now more than ever. But I couldn't leave Mother behind._

"_Where can I find him?" I asked._

_Her reply was a smile and her finger pointing to the chest near her chair. "Open it." I walked over and opened the wooden chest. Mother never let me even look at the chest, but as I opened it, all that I saw inside was a silver chain. On the chain was a silver medallion with engraved crossbones._

"_Put it on." I put the necklace around my neck and headed back to my mother. She gently rubbed her fingers on the medallion._

"_You may only take this off when you feel you need to," she told me. "Otherwise, you are to never take it off. It will take you to your father."_

_There were lots of questions I wanted to ask. What was so special about the medallion? How could my father help me? How would I be led to my father? But I only asked one question. "When should I leave?"_

"_Today. Your father is a man of the sea. In order to find him, you need to be on the sea."_

"_How? I don't have a boat."_

"_You'll just have to find one."_

"_You mean steal?"_

"_If that's your choice of wording it."_

_I've stolen lots of things before. Food, wood, sewing needles, but never a boat. I guess my mother thought I could be like my father when it comes to the sea._

"_Go. Now. Don't bother packing. It would just waste precious time." I bent over and kissed my mother on the forehead._

"_I'll find him," I told her. "Don't worry."_

"_I won't."_

_I got up and left for the door. I turned and looked at my mother. "Bye, Mum."_

"_Bye, Giselle."_

_And that was the last I ever saw of her._

I was rowing of the dingy in the middle of God-Knows-What-Ocean. The dingy was the only ship that I was capable of taking without being noticed, and I almost did! But thankfully the guard was looking after this enormous ship and wouldn't notice if a little dingy was stolen.

I was starting to get very annoyed. I didn't know how long I had been out at sea, but I was hungry, I was tired, I was thirsty, I was ready to find my father. And then, my prayers were answered.

Mother explained to me how The Black Pearl looked, I recognized this as my father's ship. "Hey!" I yelled out. "Hello! I'm looking for Captain Barbossa!"

Next thing I saw was a bunch of men bustling around the deck. One of them motioned for me to push towards the ship. I did so and a line was cast down towards me. I grabbed it and started to climb. Thank the Lord that all these years I ran around with the boys instead of the girls.

When I got on the ship, I noticed that all of the crew members were scraggly looking. Pirates, of course. One had brown dread locks with all sorts of charms in them, including a deer bone, covered in jewelry, and a tattoo of a sparrow on his arm. If the legends were true, this was Jack Sparrow, one of the greatest pirates to ever sail the seven seas.

"Hello," I said. I didn't know how to talk to a pirate! "I'm looking for Captain Barbossa."

"What business do you have with Captain Barbossa?" he said. God, his breath reeked.

"Just tell him that Giselle is here to see him," I told him. But he didn't have to. He walked up besides Jack.

"What is it you want, Miss?" he asked. Couldn't he recognize me? Of course he couldn't. He hadn't seen me in twenty-three years.

"I've come to see you," I replied. "Father."

The look on his face changed immediately. He went from neutral to shocked. Bet he didn't think that his daughter would ever be a part of his crew.

"When's your twenty-fifth birthday?" he asked. So he did know after all.

"Three weeks," I replied.

I suddenly heard a big thump. I looked down to see that Jack had fainted. Guess that he thought my father would be the same as a majority of the pirates: lonely since the day they were born.

That night, I was up in the crow's nest. I always loved to look at the stars. It felt even better, hearing the waves beat against the boat. It was so calming, so relaxing. Then I heard somebody climbing up the ladder to join me in this peaceful moment.

It was the same pirate who motioned me to paddle towards the ship. He had blonde hair, but I'm sure you would see more of it if the grim and the grease hadn't taken over. He extremely tall and very skinny. I noticed that he had an eyepatch on and wondered if he lost his eye before or after he joined my father's ship.

"Sorry," he said. "Oi didn' realize someone wa' up 'ere."

"It's okay," I told him. "I could use the company."

He hesitated for a moment. I didn't blame him. If my father caught us both on the crow's nest, who knows what he would do to him. Eventually, he sat down besides me and brought his knees up to his chest.

"What's your name?" I asked.

"Ragetti."

I held out my hand. He shook it. "Nice to meet you, Ragetti. I'm..."

"Giselle."

"You know me?"

"Ev'ryone knows who you are. It came as a shock, findin' out tha' Barbossa had a daughter, but it came even a bigger shock to find he had a..."

He suddenly stopped and looked out into the ocean. A smile spread across my face. "A young and decent-looking daughter?" I asked.

"Uh..." he began. "Yeah."

I had to laugh at this.

"Wha's so funny?"

"Just the fact that you're scared to admit that I'm Barbossa's daughter."

"I's not tha', you don' know when Barbossa's lurkin' 'round these parts."

Again, I had to laugh.

"Are you scared of him?"

"Ev'ryone is. Even Jack."

"That's hard to believe."

We went silent for a moment. It was obvious he wasn't going to break it. I guessed that I had to.

"What remarkable thing have you done?" I asked.

"Wha'?"

"Everyone's done something remarkable. What's yours?"

"Nothin'."

"Nothing? You've never done anything remarkable."

"Not tha' I can tink of."

"There's got to be something."

"Well...I did once release a goddess from 'er human bonds."

I didn't know whether to believe him or not. "Which goddess?"

"Calypso."

Calypso? The goddess who broke Davy Jones heart? Mother told me all sorts of stories about their heartbreak and how the first Pirate Lords brought Calypso into human bonds and that she would eventually have to be released. I was starting to believe Ragetti more and more.

"How did you release her?"

"Well, all o' the Pirate Lords put their nine pieces o' eight into a little bowl. Your father set the items on fire and say 'Calypso, I release you from your human bonds'. But you had to say it like saying to a lover."

This brought me over the edge. I had to laugh at this. My father? Speaking to a goddess as if speaking to a lover?

"How did he say it."

"Basically like he was praying to a God."

"If that's how he would talk to my mother, no wonder she let him leave!"

He laughed at this.

"So, how did you release Calypso?"

"Well, obviously, your father didn't say it right. So, I said it to Calypso, an' she was released."

"How did you say it?"

He looked kind of embarrassed when I asked him this. He obviously did more than just say, "Calypso, I release you from your human bonds." There was obviously physical contact and my father would probably kill him if he even caught us on the crow's nest, let alone him being only inches apart from me. But I felt that my father didn't rule my life.

"There's nobody out here but us," I told him.

"All right," he said. "I'll show you."

He moved to where he was sitting right next to me. "Calypso," he said. I had to smile at this, him calling me a goddess. He cupped his hand and lightly touched my hair with it. He leaned in closer, to where I could feel him breathing on me. I felt loved, and he hadn't even said the rest yet. "I release you from your human bonds," he whispered.

I was absolutely shocked. I couldn't believe that this pirate could speak to her as if he was speaking to the one he always loved. "Who did you think about when you said it?" I asked.

"No one," he answered.

"You never fell in love?"

"No. Never. But, when I talked to her, I felt that I would love soon."

"How soon?"

"Very soon."

I smiled. I always believed that everyone had a special person in their lives and the reason some people died without that special someone was because they already met, but they were just too scared to admit it. It was great to know that this nice pirate would find love, even if he was pretty gruffy-looking.

I looked out and noticed that a ship was approaching. I stood up to get a better look at the ship. A look of horror spread across my ship.

"Wha' is it?" Ragetti asked.

"Go get my dad," I said. "Tell him that The Ghost Ship is here.


	2. Captain of the Ghost Ship

Everyone that was on the ship was suddenly huddling over to see what was approaching. All they saw was a normal ship, but my father and I saw so much more.

"The ship stopped!" someone announced.

"Why would they come?" I asked my father. "They're not supposed to take me for another three weeks."

"The captain of the Ghost Ship is an ignorant man," my father replied. "He'll take his catch, regardless of deals."

"Hello," somebody whispered into my ear behind me. I quickly turned and saw the last person that I ever wanted to see.

The captain of the ghost ship looked nothing like a ghost. He looked like a normal human being. But the only difference between him and human beings was that he was actually dead.

When he was murdered by a fellow pirate, he wasn't on the sea, so he couldn't go to Davy Jones locker, and neither Heaven nor Hell would take him. He was cast out to the world as a ghostly figure and captain of his own ship. His crew was made up of either people who had the same fate as him or made deals with the devil.

"We made a deal Barbossa," the captain spoke to my father, flashing him an evil grin. "She is to be mine."

"And the deal was that she would be yours on her twenty-fifth birthday if she did not pass on her gifts," my father replied. "She is not twenty-five yet. In fact, her twenty-fifth birthday isn't for another three weeks."

"You of all people should know that I'm an impatient man."

"But you only want to take me so I could be a part of your crew," I spoke up. "And if you take me now, I will turn into dust. Now, tell me Captain, what use would I be if I was dust?"

I always was able to persuade anyone to do whatever it was I wanted them to do. It was a gift. The captain gave me a nasty look, but returned to his evil smile.

"I'll let you go this time," he said. "But if you have not passed on the gift by your twenty-fifth birthday..."

He tugged his transparent hand through where my heart was. At first, I didn't feel anything, but then he somehow brought an excruciating pain through my whole body. My heart felt like it stopped. It felt that my body was on fire while someone was stabbing me with thousands of knives. "Stop," I quietly pleaded. It even hurt to talk.

He slowly pulled his arm out of my heart. I nearly collapsed to the floor, but I felt someone catch me, help me back up, and hold onto me so I wouldn't fall. I looked to see that it was Ragetti who was holding onto me.

"You'd better hurry Barbossa," the captain told my father. "Unless you want your daughter to serve an eternity on my ship."

He disappeared. My father turned and looked at me with fear in his eyes. "What did he do to me?" I whispered, leaning against Ragetti.

"He was showing you what it would be like if you served on the Ghost Ship," my father replied.

"So despite the fact that I'll be dead, I'll still feel pain."

"The pain was internal. Not external. He has ways of making the emotional pain become physical pain."

It was around this time when I passed out from exhaustion while holding onto my hero for dear life.

When I awoke, I noticed that I wasn't holding onto anybody, but rather lying in a bed. It wasn't the most comfortable bed, but I wasn't complaining. I looked over to see Ragetti and another pirate sitting over in the corner. The other pirate was shorter than Ragetti, had a little bit of a belly, and was bald on the top part of his head, but had long, gray strings of hair growing on the sides of his head.

They were whispering to each other, trying to make sure I wouldn't overhear. Slowly, I leaned up so I could hear them better, but all I could make out was the other pirates saying, "you released..."

"Hello," I said, trying to sound like I just woke up. They turned in surprise.

"Who's your friend?" I asked Ragetti.

"'E's me uncle," he replied.

"The name's Pintel," the older man said, standing up and bowing. "I's a pleasure to meet ye."

"I'm not a princess or a goddess," I told Pintel. "You don't have to treat me like one."

"But you amount to a princess or a goddess," Ragetti said. His face turned red when he realized what he just said. I smiled at him.

"That's sweet of you," I told him. Before I could say another word, I passed out from exhaustion again.

I wouldn't have woken up the time I did if it weren't for the snoring up above me. I suddenly realized that there was another bed above mine. When I looked down, I noticed a figure lying limply on the floor. "Ragetti?" I whispered.

The figure shifted positions and looked up at me. It was too dark, but I swore I saw him smile. "'Ello Sleepin' Beauty," he replied.

"I don't know what he did to me."

"You're no' in any pain no more, are you?"

"Thankfully, no. But your uncle just might be in as much pain as I was if he doesn't stop snoring!"

"You'd wanna ge' used to it. I've had to 'ear 'im snore since I wa' fifteen."

I suddenly realized that I was lying on a bed while he was sleeping on the floor.

"Why are you lying on the floor?" I asked.

"Cause oi wanted you ta have a bed."

"That was nice of you. But now that I'm well rested, you may takes your bed back now."

"No."

"No?"

"I wan' you ta stay in it."

"I don't want you to lie on the floor, though."

"I'll lie on the floor if it means you can have a bed."

It was obvious he wouldn't kick me out of the bed. I had to find a way to give him the comfort of a bed and not the comfort of a hard, wooden floor. Then the thought came to me.

"I guess we could share the bed."

He looked up at me and saw that I was serious. "Bu' wha' if someone comes in?" he asked.

"I'll push you out of the bed if anyone comes in," I replied with a smile.

Ragetti didn't respond for a little while. Finally, he quietly got up and climbed into the bed. "This feels wrong," he whispered, making sure he wasn't facing me.

"You're too nice," I said with a smile. Within minutes, I fell asleep, close to my hero, my protector.

The next morning, I was awoken by a chain reaction from Ragetti being pushed. I looked up to see Pintel having a look of confusion on his face.

"I know what you're thinking," I told him. "But he refused to kick me out of the bed, so I told him that we should share it so he wouldn't have to sleep on the floor."

"Well, ye migh' wanna ge' up before Barbosse comes in 'ere," he told us.

We both quickly leaped out of the bed. I sat back down on it while he and Pintel raced over to the bench on the other side of the room. As if he was called, my father walked into the room. He snorted at Ragetti and Pintel, but smiled when he saw me.

"Did you have a good rest last night?" he asked.

"Yes," I replied.

"An' how did these two treat you?"

"They were gentlemen." My father looked back over at the two pirates.

"Course they did," he replied. "They know what would happen to them if anything happened to my daughter."

I noticed a look of fear in Ragetti's eyes. Lucky for him, I didn't plan on telling my father about the previous night any time soon. My father turned back to me.

"We'll be stoppin' soon," he told me.

"We're already at the Fountain of Youth?" I asked in confusion.

"No. We're going to visit Calypso."


	3. Into the Temple of Calypso

I was up on the deck, gazing out into the ocean. I never saw anything so beautiful. Further out from the ocean, I noticed a little island that was surrounded by rocky formations.

"That is where we'll be landing," my father said, noticing that I was gazing at the formations.

"It's just a bunch of rocks," I told him.

"It's more than rocks. That be the temple of Calypso."

"And you think that she'll appear before us?"

"I know that she'll appear before us."

"But Ragetti released her."

"From her human bonds. Not her goddess bonds."

With that being said, my father left me alone so he could give out orders to the crew. I heard someone come up and lean over the railing besides me. I looked over, wishing it would be Ragetti, but much to my surprise, it was Jack Sparrow.

"What business did the captain of the Ghost Ship have with you?" he asked me.

"What does it matter to you?" I asked him.

"I'm a curious man. I would just like to know."

"I'll tell you what, Jack. I'll answer any question you ask me if you'll truthfully answer any question I ask you."

"All right, then. What business did the captain of the Ghost Ship have with you?"

"When I was born, a sorcerer gave me certain powers and told my parents that I should pass my powers on to a different life form by my twenty-fifth birthday or else I'll spend an eternity on the Ghost Ship. Have you ever fallen in love?"

"Yes, once. How do you pass on the powers?"

"All I know is that I need to go to The Fountain of Youth, draw my blood onto this silver necklace I have, and drop the necklace into the fountain. How did you meet her?"

"I bumped into her while stealing some food. Which necklace?"

I pulled out the necklace that I hid inside my shirt.

"This one. Did she love you back?"

"Yes. We even got married. What are these certain powers that you have inherited?"

"I can make things appear, disappear, I can change something about a person if they're willing for me to do so, I can basically turn the world upside-down if I want to. What happened to your relationship?"

"I guess that a life of piracy interested me more than a life of commitment."

He fell silent. Jack turned and left.

"No more questions?" I asked.

"No more questions," he replied. A few minutes later, the boat came to a complete halt. I looked over and saw Ragetti standing besides me. He had a look of jealousy on his face, but he obviously was trying to cover it up. I was starting to wonder what he was being jealous about. Then, it hit me.

"He was only asking me questions," I assured him. He only nodded.

"We're leavin' fer Calypso's temple," he started.

I nodded and headed for the elevated dinghy that my father sat in.

When we arrived at the island, I looked over to see a wave wash over Pintel and Ragetti's dinghy and was them over to the shore. I had to laugh while I ran over and helped them up.

"Jus' ta let you know," Ragetti said while I was helping him, "thi' ain't the first time thi' happened."

"I guessed," I replied, still laughing. Ragetti and Pintel, the two crew members that my father trusted the most, went to the temple with us just in case anything were to happen. Jack also escorted us, but I figured it was only because he couldn't be trusted on the Black Pearl without my father.

We walked around the island until we came to some rock formations that was in the shape of a human form. I didn't know what Calypso looked like, so I wasn't able to tell if it was her or not. Suddenly, the ground shook and I saw a figure step from the rock formations. As soon as I saw the transparent woman, I knew that it was Calypso.

"Tha' can't be 'er!" Pintel yelled out. "She wa' released!"

"From my human bonds," she said with anger, stomping towards Pintel. "But tell me, human, can you do this?"

She suddenly walked through Pintel two times and faced back towards him. He had a shocked look on his face.

"I didn't think so," she said with a smile. Calypso turned back to my father, Jack, and I. She smiled when she saw Jack, but the minute she saw me, the smile left her face as she paced towards me. She tried to touch the necklace that hung around my neck, but quickly pulled away.

"I had been waiting for you," she said, adverting her eyes to mine.

"You knew that I was coming?" I asked.

"I thought that you would need some more explaining. Unfortunately, Amos didn't explain everything the day you were born."

"Amos?"

"The man who gave you that necklace."

"He explained that I needed to pass on my abilities on my twenty-fifth birthday by dropping this necklace into the Fountain of Youth while it's covered in my blood or else I'll serve an eternity on the Ghost Ship."

"A long time ago, before your great-grandparents were even born, the devil let his evil forces to roam free on this earth. The gods, including myself, decided that someone should be able to protect the world from these evil forces. Every twenty-five years, the gods choose a new person to pass on these gifts to. These people are called protectors. Unfortunately, you have to do something that no other protector has ever done before. By passing on your gifts, you not only are trying to protect yourself, but you are trying to protect the world."

I looked at her in surprise. Me? Save the world? This couldn't be possible.

"You're telling me that I'm not only trying to save myself by releasing my gifts," I started, "but I'm trying to save the world?"

"Unfortunately, these dark forces are more powerful than they have ever been. None of the protectors ever had the fear of serving an eternity on the Ghost Ship. They all just passed on their gifts, not aware that they even were protecting the world from the evil forces. But when the captain of the Ghost Ship heard that you were chosen to be the protector, he made a deal with Amos. Leave out the important details and have you serve an eternity on the Ghost Ship if you fail and the captain would give Amos something he wanted. The ability to fee like a human. Once the rest of the gods and goddesses found out what Amos did, they bound him to human bonds, much like what happened to me."

Suddenly, Calypso gave a nasty look to my father and to Ragetti. My father stood very still, but Ragetti flinched. He looked like he was scared of Calypso. I guessed that she didn't want to be released from her human bonds. But the way that he said it...

Once I realized that I was having the daydream about being a goddess, I snapped back to reality and faced Calypso once more.

"Do you know how my mother is?" I asked.

She turned back to me and gave me a weird look.

"My mother, before I left, she was really sick. Do you know how she is?"

Calypso looked down to the ground and looked back up at me. "She was murdered."

I was frozen in shock. I thought about who would kill my mother? She never had any enemies. All she did was stay in the house. I was always the one who had to get the money and steal whatever it was that we needed. She didn't know anybody.

I looked over and saw that my father had the same look on his face. He was as shocked as I was.

"Murdered?" I asked.

Calypso only nodded her head. Slowly, she started to walk back to where she first emerged from. Before she walked back into the rock formation, she turned and looked into my eyes.

"Remember that you've been handed a blessing," she said, "but you've also been handed a curse."

And with that, she disappeared into the rocks


	4. Some Pirates Just Have to Be Slapped

I could barely make it back onto the ship. My mind was all in a fog. I had to be helped by my father back onto the ship, who seemed as shocked as I did. When I finally reached onto the Black Pearl, I quickly made it back down to the room I originally stayed at the night before.

I collapsed onto the bed and immediately started to cry. My mother had always been my best friend. She had always helped me through tough times and always made me feel safe. She would have me believe that she would always protect me no matter what. But now that she was gone, who would protect me?

Suddenly, I felt someone place their hand on my back. I jerked my head up and found the person that I needed the most at this time.

"Ragetti..."

I suddenly held onto him and cried on his chest. I felt his arms wrap around me, pulling me closer, and placing one hand on the back of my head and the other hand on my back. I felt a sudden warmth the minute I held onto him. I never wanted to let go.

"I know wha' i's like," he whispered.

"What?" I asked.

"Ta loose your Mum. I know wha' i's like."

"How?"

"She wa' a whore."

If I was like any other woman, I would have pushed Ragetti away and told him that I never wanted to see his face again. Luckily, I wasn't like any other woman. My mother taught me at a young age that the reason that a majority of women turn into prostitutes was that they needed enough money to get by.

"She wa' found sho' in the head," he continued.

"I'm sorry," I whispered. I still clung onto him. With his arms wrapped around me, I felt that he would always be there for me. Right at that moment, he tripped me, and I fell in love.

After the much needed comfort that I got from Ragetti, I went back up deck to look for my father. I found him up on the crow's nest, gazing out into the ocean like I had before, with the little monkey on his shoulder.

I knew that he was as stunned as I was about the news of my mother's death, but he hadn't seen my mother in over twenty-three years. Suddenly, my depression turned into anger. How could my father leave us for that long of a time? He never even bothered to come back! I didn't even know my father until the day before.

"How could you?" I asked him, though quietly enough so that he couldn't hear me. I shuffled to the side of the ship and leaned over so I could see the passing waters.

"Pretty, ain't it?"

I jumped when I heard the voice besides me, but when I turned, I was glad to see Pintel leaning over besides me.

"Whe' I wa' in the Navy, I use ta love ta gaze ou' inta the deep blue."

"You were in the Navy?" I asked him.

"Aye. Ragetti an' I both."

"Did Ragetti join the Navy after his mother died?"

"How did ya..."

"He told me earlier."

"Aye. He wa' fifteen whe' hi' mum wa' murder. An' I, bein' hi' uncle an' all, ha' ta take care o' him."

"So why aren't you two in the Navy anymore?"

"We lef' cause o' the bad food and cause o' them bein' abusive."

"Is that how Ragetti lost his eye?"

Pintel looked at the ground and sighed when he looked back out into the ocean.

"Rags accidentally sho' a fellow lad in the eye. He wa' only fifteen, he didn' know how ta work a gun. Bu' the Navy's policy is a eye fer a eye."

I was surprised. I always thought that Ragetti lost his eye from an accident.

"He got shot in the eye because of an accident?" I asked.

"Oi didn' agree wi' the policy either. We lef' tha' night."

"I don't blame you."

"Don' tell Rags oi told ye, though. He never told nobody. No' even Barbossa."

"I'll stay quiet."

"Fanks."

Pintel turned around and walked away. I continued to gaze out into the ocean. It calmed me down. I wasn't mad at my father anymore. I was more concerned about Ragetti. I knew that he lost his eye a long time ago, but how could anyone be so cruel? No wonder they left the Navy.

"I'm sorry I ever left." I turned to see my father leaning over besides me. I only smiled.

"You don't have to apologize," I told him. "You're not the reason Mum was killed."

"I still feel guilty. I hadn't seen her in years."

"You did what you had to do. You don't have to apologize for that."

"Do you forgive me?"

"I forgive you, Father."

I smiled at him and then turned back to the ocean. I heard my father walk away. I had to smile at myself. I was no longer mad at my father, for he knew that what he did was wrong. I wish he never left, but at the same time, I'm so glad that I met him on board of his ship.

I finally turned and spotted Ragetti. I walked over to him.

"Are ya doin' okay?" he asked me.

"I'm fine," I replied. "At least, better than I was before."

We didn't talk for a little bit, but then I had to break the silence once again.

"Do you know where we're heading?" I asked him.

"Singapore."

"Why are we going to Singapore?"

"My guess is ta visit Poppett."

"Popett?"

"A girl who use ta be on the ship. She's now one a the pirate lords."

"It's nice to know that I wasn't the only woman on board of this ship."

"Though ya haven' been taken advantage o'."

"What?"

I noticed that his one eye widened and he turned his face so he wouldn't make eye contact with me.

"Who took advantage of her?"

"No' me, if tha's wha' you're thinkin'."

"I know you, Ragetti, and I know that you wouldn't do that too anybody. You're too nice. Now, who took advantage of her?"

Ragetti quickly looked down, but pointed his finger. I turned and saw that the finger was in the direction of Jack Sparrow.

"Thank you Rags," I said with a smile. I raced towards Jack, but I knew that Ragetti was racing after me.

"Jack!" I yelled when I finally got near him. The minute that his head turned, I slapped him across the face. He stumbled back a little, but adverted eyes back to me.

"Don't think I deserved that," he said.

"You deserved it," I assured him.

"Did I deserve that?"

"I was just doing a favor for a fellow woman."

"I see that you've quickly gotten over the death in the family."

Once again, I slapped him across the face. He stumbled back again.

"I deserved that one," he said before he fell to the ground. I only smiled and stepped over him towards my father, who gave me the biggest smile I had ever seen.

"To Singapore?" I asked him.

"To Singapore," he replied.


	5. Upon Shipwreck Cove

A/N: Hey guys! I know that I haven't updated in a really really long time, but I've been REALLY busy since school started and I also kind of had some computer problems (somehow BOTH of my computers got viruses!) and now that I actually have a social life….but I'm BACK, and better than ever! So, without further ado, the continuation of _Protector_.

_"Help!" I screamed as loud as I could. "Help me! Help!" I couldn't breath. The deep waters kept on pushing me under. I could feel my lungs being filled up. I couldn't take it anymore. I just gave up and let the water take over…_

_Suddenly, I was being pulled out. Someone was saving my life. When I could feel the cold air being lifted back onto my face instead of the harsh cold of the waters, I quickly let in a deep breath of air, filling myself with life once more._

_Looking up, I saw a white light casting over my savior. Once that light dissolved, I looked and was surprised at who I saw._

_"Mum?"_

My eyes flew open to reveal that my mother hadn't pulled me out of the waters, but instead I was lying on the bed once more. It was only a dream. I wanted to cry, but it was at that point that I realized that I couldn't cry anymore.

I turned over and smiled to see Ragetti on the other side. It was so comforting to feel that someone I trusted so much was next to me. I scooted closer to feel his warmth and, out of nowhere, started to stroke his hair. It didn't feel good, furrowing my fingers through that mop of grease and slime, but at the same time, it felt so good to just be touching the one I loved.

At that point, when I realized that I was touching the person I loved, I slowly pulled my hand back and placed it across my stomach.

How would he react if he felt me stroking him and awoke to see me? Would he then find that I loved him?

I couldn't deal with heartbreak again.

But I looked back at his face and surprised at what I saw. He was smiling! I know that he was asleep, but he was actually smiling.

And then, he muttered something under his breath that I will never forget.

"Giselle," he whispered softly.

At that point, a sudden sensation flew over me. I felt like something was punching against my stomach. I started to sweat, but at the same time, I was smiling and gently laughing. My emotions were flowing back and forth.

So this was what it felt like to be in love.

Still smiling, I laid my head back on my pillow, closed my eyes, and traveled back into my dreams.

I was awakened once more to feel a slight bump against my shoulder. I slowly opened my eyes, though very reluctant, and I saw a very strange figure in front of me.

I didn't recognize them at first, noticing how very skinny, tan, and beautiful that person was. When suddenly, it dawned on me…

"Hello there," the woman whispered, trying not to wake up anyone else. "I'm Elizabeth Swann."

I couldn't find it in myself to say anything. Not only was I lying in my bed, awakened by one of the Pirate Lords, but I also was lying next to Ragetti, whom she had obviously had met before. She must have read my mind, for at this point, she just laughed and looked at my position.

"It is quite all right," she assured me. "I am no stranger to love."

Was I that obvious?

"I'm…"

"Giselle," she finished my sentence. "Yes, I know who you are. Barbossa told me about you while guiding me here."

"So we're in Singapore?"

"We were in Singapore. Your father and Jack thought that it would be best to just travel on our own and not wake anybody."

"Thank you…I guess…"

I felt a jerking to my side and looked over to see the horror spread over Ragetti's face.

"E…'Ello p…poppet," he somehow managed to stutter out.

Elizabeth smiled a sweet, motherly smile and replied to the man, "Hello Ragetti." I looked back over to him to see that he still had that look of horror spread across his face, but it relaxed a little bit once he saw that smile on Elizabeth's face. It was as if that little smile was telling us that we could trust her with this little secret. Even though I had more of a secret that needed to be kept than Ragetti…

"We're on our way to Shipwreck Cove," Elizabeth whispered, as if this was a bigger secret than the one she needed to keep.

Shipwreck Cove? The meeting place for the pirate lords? How many stops would we have to take before we finally reached the one place that was of most importance to not just me, but the world?

"It is of great importance that we go there," she assured us, once again, reading my mind. "Since nearly all of our lives are on the line."

"Excuse me?"

Before I could even be given an answer, I could hear my father screaming above the deck.

"Wake up ye scallywags!" he screamed. I quickly rustled out of the bed, Ragetti quickly following behind me, and we were about to race out of the room, when we realized that we were still forgetting one person.

I quickly raced back to the top bunk and slapped Pintel across the top of his balding head.

"Ouch!" he screamed, staring daggers at me. "Wha' wa' tha' fer?"

"You'd better get out of that bed now if you don't want the wrath of Barbossa!" Elizabeth snapped at the man, jumping to my defense.

The moment that Pintel saw her, he quickly froze up, as if he wasn't expecting her this soon. Of course, I bet that he wasn't.

"P-Poppet?" he quickly asked.

"That's right," Elizabeth replied. "Now, get up!"

Pintel quickly rolled out of his upper bed, managing to bang his head in the process, and followed us as we raced to the deck of the ship. I started to search for my father, even though it was difficult amongst the commotion on board the ship. Finally, I found the man, standing square in the middle of the scene, hands placed on his hips, the little monkey placed on his shoulder. He looked even more of a captain then before.

I raced up to my father, avoiding bumping into the many pirates, and raced towards him. "What's going on?" I asked in a hurry.

"We are almost to Shipwreck Cove," my father explained. "I am sure that your mother explained it to you."

"We are already this close?"

"Aye, love. You are underestimating the speed and agility of The Black Pearl."

"Batten down the hatches!" I heard Jack vaguely scream. "Throw in the anchor! Take the…thing and run it through the…thing! Now! Move move move!"

"What is he doing?" I asked, starting to get a little impatient.

"He's trying to be a captain," my father replied, the same impatience lingering in his voice.

"Of your ship?"

"He's still under the impression that it's his ship."

"Jack!" I screamed towards the pathetic man. He quickly turned, a look over his face that made him look like he was absolutely drunk, and raced towards me.

"Yes, darling?" he asked lustfully. I couldn't believe that he was trying to swoon me when he was clearly doing the exact opposite.

"I appreciate that you want to help," I started, "however, could you please leave the ordering to my father, who actually knows what he is saying, unlike yourself."

Jack opened his mouth, trying to say something that he would consider witty to me, but nothing came out. He instead turned and stomped to the other side of the ship. I just smirked and turned back to my father.

"You would make a good captain," Barbossa replied.

"Must run in my blood."

I raced to the side of the ship, leaning over to look out into the deep ocean. I could feel the droplets spraying onto my skin, giving me the much-needed cooler feeling. I let my eyes close and lifted my head back, imagining that I was being held by the one I love.

And my imagination became reality. I felt two hands being firmly placed on the back of my shoulders. I turned, a light smile planted on my face, and looked into Ragetti's eyes. He smiled back and leaned closer to me.

"So ye won' fall," he explained. My smile widened at this. Maybe he was just finding an excuse to touch me.

But it was fine. I wanted to feel him.

I had a sudden urge to turn myself completely around to face him and kiss him. I never kissed a man before, for I never found one worthy of me. I always knew that I would find that one man that I would fall for, the one man that would make me feel safe, even if he was a scraggly, one-eyed pirate…

Luckily, before I could let my urge take over my common sense, I looked back out to the sea to see literally a cove with ships wrecked upon its shore.

"Pirates aren't really too good at giving names, are they?" I asked.

"No' exactly," Ragetti replied, slightly laughing.


	6. Discovery

A/N: Hey everyone! I'm SO sorry that I haven't updated in a while! My life has been really busy and really messed up and I had been suffereing a SEVERE case of writer's block so I haven't really had any time to write...but I'm sitting here bored at 2 AM and so after getting the 50th review begging for me to write more, I decided that if I actually have fans, I shouldn't let them down! :) Again, sorry that it took so long, I'M NOT DEAD! I'll be writing more soon...I hope...

I swear, the minute I stepped into the door, I could hear gunshots and curses covering the meeting room.

BOOM!

"This has never happened before!"

CRASH!  
"Why would Amos do this to us?"

SMASH!

"Doesn't he know if the world perished and he was human he'd perish too?"  
BLAST!  
"Amos was a fool!"

BAM!

"WOULD EVERYONE PLEASE JUST SHUT UP?!"

At the sound of my father yelling to the top of his lungs, everyone in the room silenced and turned their heads to make eye contact with him. Even though he was a short man, he stood tall and proud, like he was about to make a huge announcement. According to my mother (when she was alive), he would always stand like that if he was determined to let out what was on his mind.

"Now, what Amos did was very foolish. But, have we not all made sacrifices for the thing that we wanted most in our life? I know that at least half of the men in this room with me would give their life for a woman that they had once loved or still love to this day. And we all know that if you are handed what you want most in life, you don't care what happens afterwards. You just want it now."

"Is he usually this poetic?" I whispered to Ragetti.

"Sometimes.," he replied. "Other times 'e's yelling so loudly and so quickly tha' ye can' understan' 'im."

"My point is," my father continued, "that what Amos did was wrong, but we must not punish him for what he did."

"Why shouldn't we?!" one of the Pirate Lords shouted. "Because of him, if your daughter hasn't found the Fountain of Youth in three weeks, we will all be taking a one-way trip to Davy Jones' locker!"

"He's got a point," Jack shouted out. "I've been there once. Not a very pleasant place. Although the crabs are very friendly."

After giving Jack one of the strangest looks I had ever given anybody, I sighed, turned back to the crowd, and stood just as my father did. "Do I not have any say in this?" I asked the crowd coldly. "I mean, I am the one who's at stake here! You all will be at Davy Jones' locker and, as painful as it may sound, you all will have each other...and the crabs that Jack mentioned. I will be a crew member of The Ghost Ship! Even though I am dead, the Captain of that God-forsaken ship would manipulate my emotional pain and make it physical! Do you realize how long I will be suffering? And it's not my fault that this Amos made a horrible mistake! But he essentially got what he wanted, didn't he?"

"He sure did!" another of the Pirate Lords shouted. "And, now that he is a human, he's going to feel what it's like to be one!" 

"What are you talking about?"

The Lord just smiled one of the most evil smiles I had ever seen before and snapped his fingers. I then heard the dragging of feet across the floor and a loud thud right behind me. When I turned, I saw two big, well-built men standing with their arms barely crossed across their chests, with a scrawny, skinny, stringy-haired man lying on the ground next to them. While shivering like he was caught in the dead of winter with no coat, he slowly pulled himself up just enough so that he could see his surroundings. The minute he made eye contact, he flinched back and started to shiver even more.

"Like to see what you brought unto yourself, don't ye?" the same Pirate Lord that had been pestering about him whispered into his ear. "Look at her Amos."

The weak man shook his head, turning it so that he would not make eye contact with me.

"Look at her!"

At the harsh command, Amos slowly averted his head to where, once again, his blank, dark eyes were in direct contact with mine. I could see them tear up, and even though I was sure he couldn't muster the words out of his mouth, his stare seemed to say, "I'm sorry. For everything."

At that moment, after the long stare, my eyes teared up as well, and I started to shake, but it was for the sudden realization that swarmed over me. "You..." I growled at him. 

"Please, have mercy," Amos pleaded. "I had no choice." 

"What are ye talkin' bout?" my father growled.

"You!" I yelled once again. "I can't believe you did this to me! To her! You killed her! You bastard, you killed my mother!"

I don't remember much of that day after shouting at him. I just remember plunging at him. Wrestling him. Having to hear his plea of "how he had no choice". Slowly pulling out the knife that I kept on my belt buckle. A cut. The sound of gasping. And coughing. Slowly, I looked down, to see blood dripping everywhere. But it wasn't his blood...

"Giselle!"

Before I could make out who was calling for me, I fell to the side, with a rusted knife sticking out of my chest, piercing my heart.


End file.
